The employability journey is no longer linear and there are many components to the journey that students take. COVID-19 has added extra complexities to students’ employability journeys as well, especially in the regions where shelter-in-place orders have been disrupting several industries. According to Glassdoor, “60% of companies reduced their job listings and nearly 25% have closed their postings altogether in the past month.” Despite the hiring freezes, career services offices worldwide are working hard by “hosting virtual networking, events, talking students through hurdles they’re facing on the job hunt and helping them craft contingency plans in the event that their offers are rescinded due to the pandemic.” With the economic impact of COVID-19, career services offices are trying to anticipate the needs of their students.

Some universities with an online career services platform already in place are finding that their resources are being accessed more now in the midst of COVID-19. Cranfield University’s Career Development Services team uses Pathways, a workflow module within Symplicity CSM, to provide students with a resource library. “It functions like an FAQ for students,” said Penny Pickering, Head of Careers at Cranfield University, “By using Pathways, we allow for resources to be linked by topic. For example, if a student wanted to see all of the resources available for writing a cover letter, they can click on that topic to read through the cover letter learning pack or watch a video about putting together a cover letter.” Cranfield University has been using Pathways as a way of organizing resources by topic and keeping them all in one place. It has made it easier for their students to have full visibility into the resources that are available to them.

Students at Cranfield University have especially found this beneficial since their campus closed. With Pathways, students not only have 24/7 access to employability resources, but they can also find opportunities that are tailored to each student and the roles that interest them the most. Another way that Cranfield University is serving their students remotely is with the live chat feature. Pickering noted that “Pathways allows students to get their questions answered no matter where they are in the world. We’re aware that students are being overwhelmed with COVID-19 information which is why we’ve configured our platform to deliver exactly the information students need right now.” Pathways ensures that students are viewing the most relevant information to them without being overwhelmed.

The customization that comes with Symplicity CSM, in particular, is what has been helping Cranfield University overcome the challenges of COVID-19. “We’re unique in that we’re the only wholly post-graduate university in the UK so to be able to configure CSM to the level that we have has been incredibly beneficial for our staff and the students we support during this time,” Pickering said. In an ever-changing job market, Cranfield University continues to configure their system so that the employability journeys of their students can continue without disruption.